Veren of Lood biedt u op zondag wekelijks een inkijkje in (minstens) 10 belangrijke of informatieve artikelen en interviews die de voorafgaande 7 dagen op economisch terrein verschenen op onafhankelijke sites.

De kop is de link naar het oorspronkelijke artikel, waarvan de samenvatting of de eerste (twee) alinea’s hier gegeven zijn.

Sinds begin december 2015 nemen we ook een paar extra links op naar artikelen die minder specialistische kennis vereisen. Deze met *** gemerkte artikelen zijn ons inziens ook interessant voor lezers met weinig basiskennis van economie.

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Bernanke Blew It Big-Time: He Should Have Raised Rates Three Years Ago – Charles Hugh Smith
7 juni
Bernanke blew it big-time, letting the “recovery” run seven years without any significant increase in rates.
It is now painfully obvious that Ben Bernanke blew it big-time by not raising rates three years ago when the economy and markets enjoyed tailwinds. The former Federal Reserve chairperson, who has claimed the mantle of savior of the global economy, foolishly kept rates at zero until tailwinds turned to headwinds, at which point he handed Janet Yellen the unenviable task of raising rates as the headwinds are strengthening.
Ben Bernanke is not the savior who rescued the global economy; he is the clueless fool who plunged a poisoned knife in its back. After weathering the spot of bother in Euroland in 2011-2012, the global economy had multiple tailwinds in 2013–tailwinds that enabled Bernanke and the Fed to raise rates in a series of measured steps.
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The Brexit referendum and sterling – Stefan Gerlach, Edoardo Di Giamberardino
10 juni
The outcome of the UK’s referendum on EU membership could have a significant effect on sterling. This column estimates the potential size of this effect by looking at the relationship between daily changes in the sterling exchange rate and bookmakers’ odds of Brexit. Movements of between 5% and 15% seem plausible.
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ECB Gets Clocked by the Two Biggest German Banks – Wolf Richter
9 juni
A government-backed Revolt against NIRP-Obsessed Draghi
On the fateful day of June 8, when the ECB began buying euro-denominated corporate bonds, some of which now trade in negative-yield absurdity, the two biggest German banks counter-attacked in a well-coordinated two-pronged move.
Commerzbank, of which the German government owns nearly 16% as a consequence of the bailout during the Financial Crisis, leaked to Reuters with impeccable timing that it was considering hoarding tons (literally) of cash in its vaults rather than paying the punishment interest on deposits at the ECB.
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Synchronisation in business cycles: An endogenous explanation – Paul De Grauwe, Yuemei Ji
7 juni
There is a high degree of correlation between the business cycles of different countries. This is particularly the case in the Eurozone, but also among industrialised countries outside of the Eurozone. Using a two-country behavioural macroeconomic model, this column shows that the main channel for the synchronisation of business cycles is the propagation of ‘animal spirits’ – waves of optimism and pessimism that become correlated internationally.
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Free Trade, Brexit, and the WTO – Carmen Elena Dorobăț
10 juni
The debate surrounding the EU referendum in Britain, scheduled in two weeks, and the fate of the UK outside of the EU, is now in full swing. Unsurprisingly, little of substance has been said so far on the issue. One would expect that both sides would be better prepared with arguments to support their cause, but many aspects discussed have not only been erroneous, but have appealed to people’s fear rather than their intelligence. Both the Remain and the Leave camps have failed to show how either decision would enhance economic and political freedom; instead, they have tried to one-up each other in the preservation and growth of the existing welfare state, military complex, and bureaucratic apparatus.
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State aid, bail-in, and systemic financial stability in the EU – Stefano Micossi, Ginevra Bruzzone, Miriam Cassella
6 juni
Following the financial crisis, the EU banking system is still plagued by widespread fragilities. This column considers the tools and legal provisions available to EU policymakers to address moral hazard and incentives encouraging excessive risk-taking by bankers. It argues that the new discipline of state aid and the restructuring of banks provide a solid framework towards these ends. However, the application of new rules should not lose sight of the aggregate policy needs of the banking system.
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The Myriad Mendacious Myths of “Market Regulation” of Finance – William K. Black
7 juni
Representative Jeb Hensarling, Chair of the House Financial Services Committee has announced that he will introduce a Republican plan to repeal key provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act and replace them with “market-based” regulation. I have explained in a prior column how theoclassical economists, for over 40 years, have created repeated criminogenic environments in finance due to their unholy ideological war against effective financial regulation. The dominant policy view among economists and senior anti-regulatory policy advisers of every administration since President Carter embraced the myth that economists had invented means by which the “markets” will effectively “regulate” finance.
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Avoiding another Eurozone Crisis while avoiding the Five Presidents’ Report: Part I – Mike Wickens
Part II
7-8 juni
European Monetary Union was designed to promote economic growth, price stability, full employment, and political integration. It can be argued that so far, it has achieved none of these and has in fact made things worse. The Five Presidents’ Report contained a set of proposals for making the single currency sustainable, based on giving up more national independence. This column – the first in a two-part series asking whether future crises might be avoided through market forces without the need for the sort of procrustean proposals offered in the Report – examines the causes of the Eurozone Crisis.
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The Keynesians stole the jobs – Ron Paul
6 juni
Late last week the markets were shocked by a surprisingly bad May jobs report — the worst monthly report in nearly six years. The experts expected the US economy to add 160,000 jobs in May, but it turns out only 38,000 jobs were added. And to make matters worse, 13,000 of those 38,000 were government jobs! Adding more government employees is a drain on the economy, not a measure of economic growth. Incredibly, there are more than 102 million people who are either unemployed or are no longer looking for work.
Gold reacted to the report quickly and decisively, gaining 2.5 percent to $1,243 per ounce on Friday. Gold mining stocks also saw significant gains on the day.
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Impact of the ‘great bailout’: Evidence from car sales – Efraim Benmelech, Ralf R Meisenzahl, Rodney Ramcharan
11 juni
The US government’s ‘bailout of bankers’ in 2008-09 remains a highly controversial moment in economic policy. Many critics suggest that intervention to relieve household debt may have been more effective in stimulating economic recovery. This column suggests that without federal intervention to stabilise financial markets and recapitalise some non-bank lenders, the magnitude of the economic collapse might have been much worse. While household debt was incredibly important in reducing demand, the financial sector dislocations and the lack of credit also played a critical role.
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*** Fearful of EU Disintegration and Mired in Crisis, France Wants Britain Punished for Brexit Revolt – Don Quijones
9 juni
As support for a British exit from the EU strengthens, at least according to the latest polls that give some people whiplash, policy makers on both sides of the English Channel are finally beginning to think about the days, weeks and months after June 23. Some countries, such as Germany, seem more inclined to favor a soft, pragmatic approach in the event of a Brexit, while others, led by the government of France, are calling for a more punitive response.
As originators of the phrase “Pour encourager les autres,” (to encourage the others), it is fitting that France is leading calls for Brussels to punish the UK if its public has the temerity to vote to leave the EU. Among the measures under discussion are to expedite Britain’s removal from all EU treaties rather than let negotiations drag on, as well as restrict the “passporting” of financial services, which allows foreign-owned companies to do business with the EU via offices located in Britain.
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How Fiat Money Destroys Culture – Jörg Guido Hülsmann
7 juni
It may seem unusual that an economist would talk about culture. Usually, we talk about prices and production, quantities produced, employment, the structure of production, scarce resources, and entrepreneurship.
But there are certain things that economists can say about the culture, and more precisely, that economists can say about the transformation of the culture. So what is culture? Well, to put it simply, it is the way we do things. This can include the way we eat — whether or not we dine with family members on a regular basis, for example — how we sleep, and how we use automobiles or other modes of transportation. And of course, the way we produce, consume, or accumulate capital are important aspects of the culture as well.
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*** Ook fintech-financiering kent aardig wat tekortkomingen – Michael Werkman
9 juni
Moeizame kredietverstrekking van banken aan mkb-ondernemers heeft geleid tot de opkomst van een nieuwe niche in de financiële sector: fintech. Kleine startups met geautomatiseerde kredietbeoordelingsprogramma’s kunnen in een oogwenk de exacte kredietwaardigheid van een bedrijf bepalen, de kredietlimiet vaststellen en krediet uitkeren. Of toch niet?
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Disclaimer: De VoL-redactie selecteert deze artikelen op interessante inzichten, of naar wij denken nuttige informatie. Wij kunnen echter geen enkele aansprakelijkheid aanvaarden voor de gevolgen van beslissingen die op grond hiervan door lezers zijn genomen, zakelijk zomin als privé.